Hopes High for Solution at Herald

A dispute over the date staff are paid at the Herald group of titles could be resolved by end of today. The National Union of Journalists – which, in not one but two ballots, won overwhelming support for industrial action over the issue – says it is “optimistic” that a solution will be found today, and that any solution might also include improvements in the disputes protocol between management and the NUJ in future.
This current dispute follows a management decision to switch, by a week, the date staff are paid. The union claimed that, at worst, a week’s wages might be lost; and that some staff might be penalised by having to change the way they operate their personal finances, including direct debits.
The NUJ’s optimism led to a planned overnight strike on Friday being called off, as has a ‘work to rule’, where staff operate strictly to their contract, including taking all breaks they are entitled to.